G Train Song Contest Results Are In!

UPDATE // AUG 2 And the winner of the BROOKLYN, SWEDEN Song Contest is… Teen Commandments with the song “No Burning Headlight”! They’ll be flying to Sweden for the first all-Brooklyn music festival. On August 28th, right before the big show, Teen Commandments will play the BROOKLYN, SWEDEN Send Off show at the Rock Shop right here in Brooklyn.

A big, huge bear hug goes out to all the contestants and their amazing songs and vision, and to all the thousands of fans and friends who voted.

This morning we had the pleasure of informing Teen Commandments, aka Brett Moses and Nick LaGrasta of their success. Guess what? They’re psyched! Here’s a brief and badly transcribed interview with the pair of Williamsburg songwriters:

Brooklyn Brewery: Congratulations. Where do you live?Brett Moses: Nick and I live in Williamsburg near Kent and North 5th. We’re at one of the few remaining artist’s lofts in the area.BB: We took to your song right when it came in. How’d you hear about the contest?BM: We saw a poster at Manhattan Inn (across from the Nassau G stop, naturally).Nick LaGrasta: It was the first thing I saw when we went into the bar and we immediately started talking about the contest.BM: We hadn’t even ordered a drink yet.NL: Yeah, and we stood there for a while talking about whether or not we should do the contest.BB: So you could say that the contest actually prevented you from buying a Brooklyn beer. This promotional contest actually hurt our sales.BM: Well Brooklyn beer fueled much of the song writing process so I’d wager that your sales actually rose, slightly.BB: Oh, good. So speaking of your song writing process, how did you come to write “No Burning Headlight”?BM: Nick and I co-wrote the song– I am singing and Nick produced much of the track.BB: Most of the songs we received were all about the G but your lyrics treaded a little lighter on the subject.BM: Right, it’s not as on-the-nose as some. We wanted to capture a feeling and a moment that feels true about our lives and the area. You know, we went to some party in Greenpoint and we’re waiting to go home. Met someone at the party who’s along for the ride. Burning headlight is the train. Anyway, we recorded the song using Ableton Live and mixed it in Logic Pro. There’s also some cabasa, clave, and shaker just for fun.BB: So you’ve won a trip to Stockholm to take in our very first all-Brooklyn music festival at Debaser. Have you ever been to Sweden before?Both: No.BB: What’s your favorite Swedish band?NL: I’ve always liked Jens Lekman.BM: Is Meshuggah Swedish? They’re good.BB: Don’t know.BM: What about that electronic band, The Knife? Are they Swedish?BB: Yes, they are.BM: That’s my answer, The Knife.BB: What bands on the BROOKLYN, SWEDEN lineup are you most excited for?NL: We were psyched to see who was playing. I’ve been listening to the new Twin Sister album a lot over the last two weeks and just realized they were on the bill so that’ll be cool.BM: I’ve always been a fan of The Hold Steady. And I’ve really been into the new DIIV album.BB: Well thanks again for your effort. We were blown away by all the submissions and are excited that you guys took home the prize.BM: We could not be more grateful to our friends and families and really want to make the most of this. We hope people will keep an ear out for Teen Commandments. We’ll be playing shows in Brooklyn. This is a new project for us and we really thank Brooklyn Brewery for allowing us to reach so many people right off the bat.

If ever the sluggish G gets you down, or you find yourself inspired by the tenacity of that “green-eyed girl”… or you just want to listen to some good songs, here is the entire Top 10 for your listening pleasure:

UPDATE // JULY 25 At the end of August we’re exporting over a dozen of Brooklyn’s top bands to Sweden, as well as one lucky unsigned New York songwriter who’ll be flown to Stockholm and put up at the Story Hotel to enjoy the festival, on us. To ensure this mammoth prize is well rewarded, we asked you to write a song about Brooklyn’s storied G train. And boy, did you deliver. So much so that we couldn’t just decide on 5 entries as was originally intended, and had to double it to 10. But only one songwriter can get on that plane, and we need your help to choose the winner. So whatever it is you’re doing and get yourself over to Facebook (you’re probably already there) and vote for your favorite song*. And tell your friends, family, coworkers and general acquaintances to vote, too. And maybe drink a Brooklyn Lager while you’re at it.

In addition to going to Sweden to enjoy the show, the winning songwriter will perform alongside a handful of the bands on the festival roster at the BROOKLYN, SWEDEN Send Off at the Rock Shop on August 28.

I am a freelance journalist. I recently went to the Beer Here exhibit at the New York Historical Society. I learned so much and got to see old liquor licenses signed by Richard Varick and old recipes for spruce beer and pea pod beer. I was inspired to write an article about how the exhibit reminds us that history repeats itself, especially in the form of a nice cold beer. Hops, widely grown in New York until 1900 are now making a comeback, as is the tradition of brewing in the city. All the old breweries like Rheingold, Schafer and Piels left in the past 10-20 years, but fortunately the Brooklyn Brewery is here to carry the torch!

It would be great to include anecdotes from people who remember the old beers, their jingles, ads and beauty contests, as well as any comments you, the venerable blogger for the Brooklyn Brewery, have about the history and tradition of brewing in NYC.

Sent ‘cha my tune by email. Looking forward to hearing the other outpourings! Up the G!

http://www.vocalmatch.com/ VocalMatch

I would like to congratulate all the past winners of this event. Another event
Singer songwriter contests by VocalMatch is being held online. Only few days left. Sign up and entries are accepted till July 1st,2016.